The Spirit of the Ocean
by Super Sonic Pizza Delivery
Summary: Sonic, in a chance encounter with a magic book, is sent into the world of The Little Mermaid, transformed into the legendary being itself. To leave, he makes a deal with the Sea Witch; he must have true love's kiss with the Prince in three days, or be trapped in the book forever as sea foam. The Prince, however, is one he already knows – one who was swept in alongside him. Sonadow.
1. Chapter 1

"I know what you want. It is very stupid of you, but you shall have your way, and it will bring you to sorrow, my pretty princess." -The Sea Witch, Hans Christian Anderson's _The Little Mermaid_

"Eric, if I may say, far better than any dream girl is one of flesh and blood. One warm, and caring, and right before your eyes." -Grimsby, Disney's _The Little Mermaid_

**PROLOGUE**

Sonic's nose tickled as he begrudgingly woke from sleep. He took a deep breath in of the smell of Shadow's leather coach, still clinging on to the smell of new furniture, though the couch itself had been cracked from use. Sonic tossed and turned a lot in his sleep, Shadow had told him once, and it was taking its toll on the smoothness of the surface. Sonic didn't mind it, however, and as far as he could tell, Shadow didn't actually use this room much. There were worse things than worn leather, he thought while clenching the side absentmindedly. Like a comfortable jacket.

He felt his body making the slow transition out of unconsciousness. A cold gust of air hit his chest as he sat up, a light weight falling off of his body. It was a yellow blanket, finely stitched around the edges and quite warm for how little fabric there seemed to be. A warm grin came across Sonic's face as he lifted the blanket from the floor. _Looks like Shadow has a heart after all,_ he thought. _He must've put this over me after I fell asleep here. The Ultimate Softie._ Rubbing the fabric between his ungloved fingers, he bit his lower lip. _Come to think of it, did I even tell him I was here last night? It wasn't exactly under the normal circumstances._

Although to be honest, he didn't exactly know what normal circumstances for visiting Shadow's house were anymore. He never used to stay here this often; in fact, until a few months ago, he had never set foot in the place. He came here for a surprise birthday party – thrown by Rouge, who knew and still did know him best of anyone – and learned firsthand just how much Shadow hated surprises. He memorized the area, and the next time he ran past, he knocked on the door and dropped in unannounced. The occasional visits became frequent, dropping by with flowers from a meadow out of town "to liven this dark place a bit" or food from another country to split between the two of them. Shadow acknowledged these visits with a puzzled look and little more, and he rarely turned him away.

Sonic first stayed the night when his own place was struck by lightning, the fires and electric damage making it unsafe to live there for a few days while it was being fixed. He probably could have asked plenty of people for a place to stay; Tails would have let him in, Cream and Vanilla probably had an extra bed, and even Knuckles would probably give him somewhere to rest as long as he didn't touch the Master Emerald. Yet, of all people, he asked Shadow. There was no reason why. At least, none that he could come up with.

There was also no reason that spending the night at Shadow's became a more regular occurrence. He'd be tired from a fight and not want to run back home, though it had never been a problem for him before. He'd have plans in the area in the morning, and it'd be much more convenient to stay here. The excuses became less urgent, and some of his possessions had made his way here. Soon, it became just another part of dropping by; he'd hang around the main area for a while, then Shadow would gesture to the library in the basement, where he would sleep. They had it down to a system, and Shadow even let him know the location of the spare key – useful on this particular night, when a freak rainstorm came from nowhere and caused him to drop by with nobody else around. If there was anything Sonic disliked, it was getting wet.

He thought this over as he groggily put on his gloves. Tonight was a special circumstance, but why was he here anyway? It wasn't because of the decor – the only place in the house that wasn't spartan was this room, and after the first few times trying to read the books, he decided that they weren't for him. Shadow picked them out for him, only to get sucked in them both to fight endless monsters and literal creatures of legend. He liked adventure, but there was a time and place, and it wasn't here. Sonic wondered if Shadow knew what his books could do. If he didn't, Sonic certainly wasn't going to tell him. Who would believe in magic books, anyway?

The ambient energy in the room made his fur stand on end as he softly blinked, though in his groggy state he didn't note any danger. It was probably just static electricity hovering in the air from the storm, not causing any harm as far as he could tell. Glancing at the clock, Sonic noted the hour with little care. "Four a.m.?" he yawned, stretching his arms above his head. _Not enough time to get more sleep, too little time to do much of anything._ He scratched his head, only barely noticing his stiff fur, and stood up slowly. _Oh well. I might as well grab a glass of water or something._

His feet shuffled on the floor, barely lifting up as he felt the texture of the carpeted floor on his bare feet. He was still exhausted but couldn't feel the urge to sleep. It was like he had left something undone. Leaning down, about to put his socks and shoes on, he saw an object on the floor that wasn't there when he fell asleep. It was a book, opened at one of the final pages.

It wasn't a book he'd been offered by Shadow. For one thing, it was too thin, maybe fifty pages at most – hardly the epics that had been pushed in his lap before, like the _Tales of King Arthur_ or _The Arabian Nights_. Every other page was an illustration, painted in whimsical watercolors with swirling details. The open page had a watercolor painting of a ship on the ocean in a storm, the swirls of deep blue water and clouds creating an illusion of movement of clouds and waves. It's a book for kids, he thought to himself. Why would Shadow even own this?

Sonic picked up the lightweight book and blew a small amount of dust off the pages, looking even more closely at the details of the painting for a moment before hearing the clacking noise of metal shoes coming down stairs.

"Shadow!" Sonic exclaimed, before thinking better of it. The black hedgehog's quills were disheveled, a sign Sonic knew by now meant that he has just woken up.

"Sonic," he said, deep voice crackling slightly with early morning dryness, "Could you not drop my books from the shelves? Especially when I'm not aware you are here in the first place?"

Sonic looked at Shadow with a twinge of guilt before holding out the open book to him. "I didn't think you were such a light sleeper," he laughed, walking over. "I found this book open on the floor when I woke up, and I don't think it would have made a loud thud anyway. It was probably the thunder."

"Thunder?" Shadow asked him. "Why would there be thunder? It's been clear skies all night, and –"

Shadow stopped and looked down at the open page. His body stopped, and the temperature of the room seemed to drop ten degrees. "Where–where did you find this?" he asked, his hands shaking slightly.

"Like I said, it was on the floor. And really, it's not exactly my kind of book."

Shadow's eyes widened. "Did you read it?"

"No. I don't even know what it's called. All I saw was the picture of the ocean at the end..."

Sonic looked at the other, puzzled. It seemed weird that Shadow would make a big deal out of something like this; in fact, he hadn't seen Shadow so worked up since he lost his memory, and that was years ago. And over what? A little book? Maybe if it was an antique or valuable, but it didn't seem that way/ What could possibly be so important? It just didn't add up. And Sonic would get to the bottom of it – in his own way.

"What's wrong? Embarrassed to be reading a children's book?" he asked, running over the illustration with his finger.

"That's not it at all! It's more about what happened – why am I telling you this? It's none of your concern. Just put the book down. Don't make me tell you again."

A smirk crossed Sonic's face, and he held the book just out of reach. "Why should I? And anyway, I'm telling the truth. I just found it on the floor. I figured you took it out."

"I certainly did not. In fact –"

The two stopped talking a small breeze emitted from the book. The air smelled of sea salt, and the two of them began to eye the book warily. Sonic became aware of what it was that woke him up; it was the same energy as before, when aspects of the books came to life before sucking him inside. Flecks of water hit his cheek, and the sound of laughter echoed in the room.

"Shadow," Sonic asked, "is there anyone else in the house? Someone making that sound?" Unconsciously, he broadened his stance and clutched the book tightly in two fists. He trusted his insticts at this point; he was going to face danger soon.

Shadow's shaking got worse, and his eyes widened. For the first time in Sonic's life, Shadow did not look angry, upset, or ambivalent. No – he looked terrified.

"No..." he whispered to himself, the breeze escalating to a whirlwind over his speech. "It's impossible... he's gone... I thought..."

"Who is here, Shadow? Maybe they took out the book in the first place!"

The sound of crashing waves began to join that of the tumultuous wind, growing louder and louder. "Nobody! Nobody should be here!" Then, back in a whisper to himself, "Why would he even do this? I thought I had –"

Sonic could have sworn he saw a fine spray of sea foam rise from the book, spiraling and reaching past the pages. It ebbed and flowed in the air with a life of its own, and it surrounded both Shadow and Sonic with a fine mist of sea water.

Sonic let go of the book, letting it fall to the floor, and he grabbed Shadow's hands tightly, heart racing.

"Don't touch me!" Shadow growled, trying to shake his hands free, but Sonic would not budge. He knew what was going to happen; if it was anything like before, the two of them would be sent straight into danger in a strange world. There could be dragons, or sorcerers, or things beyond his imagination. Looking at Shadow's eyes, filled with panic, he clutched even tighter. Shadow could handle himself, but that didn't mean Sonic didn't worry about him. It was completely normal. Right?

The sea foam was hitting the both of them now, and though Sonic tried closing the book with his foot, it didn't budge. "Why won't it close?" he yelled over the roaring winds. "I've got to close it, or it'll get worse!"

"Would you just listen to me for once? Let go now! I don't want you to do this!"

"Will you just trust me?"

Now water began to spill from the book, and Shadow's eyes grew wide. "It's too late. You idiot!" he said, no longer struggling against Sonic's hands. He looked at the book with dread as the water flooded the room, then back to Sonic with an intense gaze. "I don't know what's going to happen," he yelled, "but I'll try to protect you from his tricks. I swear! I will save you!"

Sonic was confused. "Why would you need to save..."

The words were lost in the rush. A large gush of water protruded from the book – or, maybe, he grew smaller and fell into the water from before. A large gush came between the two, breaking the hold they had on each other. Sonic called out Shadow's name, but the black hedgehog's own body seemed to fade from view in a show of shimmering lights. _Is it the book, or is he using Chaos Control to save himself?_ Sonic wondered, but before he could think about it too much, the pull of his weight in the depths of the water called to his attention. Violently.

The only thing that was entirely clear about the situation was that a large wave was now engulfing his body, pushing him back and forth, catching him in a fearsome riptide. Everything else was lost in the flow; Sonic had no sense of direction, forgetting which way was up or how long he had been under. _What is happening? _ Sonic wanted to yell, but as he opened his mouth, water filled his lungs. The sheer reaction was painful, his gasps for air only filling him with more water and stinging his throat with the salt, and for the first time in this ordeal, Sonic was entirely sure he was going to die.

He couldn't move his legs, as if they were bound together by an outside force, and he began to plummet into the watery depths. The salt water stung his eyes as he tried to see what was happening, so he squeezed them shut, only seeing the light that passed through his eyelids. It grew darker and darker. Was he really going that deep? Or was this him blacking out, falling peacefully to his death?

He stopped struggling for air. He let himself sink, and just before losing consciousness, he thought he heard the laughter again.

**((AN: I know it's been a while since I've put any stories or updates online; blame school and depression, I guess. Anyway, this was originally supposed to be up last Friday, along with the new update for Fun House Mirrors and a oneshot, but lightning struck my building and left me without internet. These are among the birthday presents for Draenog Glas, who has been waiting for me to start putting this story up for a long time. If she is reading this, I'm sorry it wasn't up on your birthday, but I hope you like it anyway. And, of course, I hope the rest of you like it too.))**


	2. Chapter 2

The waters were still, only slightly swaying the seaweed on the mostly barren seabed. The dust had settled since a stranger had fallen from the sky, either dispersed in the sea or floating back down to rest on the ground. Small fish passed by unaware, as if the unconscious body was just another part of the scenery; if it wasn't edible, it wasn't worth their time, and though it remained very still, it was very much alive.

Time passed. Less light made its way to the ocean floor, and with the loss of light came a drop in temperature. The fish moved to more warm, plentiful areas; after all, this space was largely empty, save for the body and a few strands of plants that clung for dear life. The area remained undisturbed for hours before a dark figure approached, scaring away what little fish remained nearby. Ten long tentacles dragged its form across the ground, as if it were walking through the water on ten legs. It was unusual for someone living in the sea to act in such a way; walking was for land dwellers, not for the merfolk and their relatives. The Sea Witch, however, had never been much like the others anyway, and it would not be the first time he did something most others considered strange, almost improper. That was the sort of creature he always had been.

As he got closer to the figure, he noted its appearance. Its torso had the appearance of a blue hedgehog, lying on its side in the dirt. His quills went back naturally, unlike most from around here whose quills, fur, or hair tended to rise upward from their lifetime of little gravity. It was curious; only the merfolk who spent nearly all their time near the surface had quills like this, but here he was (and it was a he, the witch decided – this person didn't have a woman's build), in the open spaces outside of Atlantis, quite far from the border of sea and land. He couldn't get a good look at the boy's face, but he saw old scars underneath the fur. A warrior of some kind, perhaps? Or maybe just someone who'd had a hard life. Whatever it was, the witch was determined to know soon enough.

His tail, though, drew more of the witch's attention. Most merfolk had tails the same color as their hair or fur, and the very few that didn't fit the mold tended to have green or brown tails to blend with their environments. By that logic, the boy's tail should have been blue, like his fur – yet not only was it not blue, it was a brilliant red, shimmering gold when the light hit it a certain way. Not the same color, and certainly not useful for blending in – he'd never seen anything like it before. Upon touching the boy's tail, his upper body shifted in form, briefly taking the appearance of splattering black ink before settling on the torso and head of a black hedgehog, pale green stripes lining upturned quills and stiff arms. Looking at the rings and gloves that formed on his hands, the Sea Witch sighed to himself. "It appears the Prince has returned," he said, glancing once more at body on the ocean floor, "or, at least, this boy knows him quite well." Grazing his finger along the boy's tail, he shivered. "What an unfortunate circumstance, to have been summoned in such a way. It must have been painful."

A rustling sound broke the witch's concentration, drawing his attention away from the strange body before him. A merman swam in front of him, holding a makeshift blade fashioned from a sharp piece of fish bone in his hands. The witch rose from the ground, breaking no longer touching the body. "I certainly hope the fish was dead when you found it," he mused to the incomer, "or are the people in the villages beginning to adopt a disrespect for life as well as for others?"

The villager snorted. "You would know about disrespect for life and others, octopus."

"Squid. At least, that's the closest relative to whatever it is I am. I am nowhere near an octopus, though, I assure you. Ask any of the scholars studying me these days."

The villager spat and gripped the bone tighter. "I don't care what you are, you pitiful excuse for a creature. I care about what you've done... and what you're trying to do now."

The witch raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Tell me, then. What is it that you think I am doing?"

The villager gestured at the body. "That's the missing boy right there, isn't it? That's the boy Aero, from Atlantis. And you're about to take him and do your curses and voodoo on him. Just like you did with all those others."

The witch looked for a moment at the body before laughing at the peasant. "This boy isn't Aero. His tail isn't even the right color!"

"You're a filthy liar!"

"I do not speak lies. Aero's tail was blue. This boy's is red. I'm sure even you've noticed by now, dull though you may be."

The villager glanced down at the body. Then, at the witch. Then, at the boy again, beginning to approach. With a great rush, the Sea Witch blocked him from getting closer, his tentacles spread and flaring back and forth in darting motions. "Don't touch him!" the witch warned. "He has been touched by magic. You don't know what it would do to you!"

"Only your magic. Probably what turned the boy's tail red. And I'm going to cure him."

"How, exactly? You don't know what's wrong with him."

"You don't know that…."

"Yes, I do. What you would do is grab the boy, trying to engage me in a fight along the way, no doubt, and take him back to your village. If you're lucky and the magic that has touched him does not affect you, you still will not know what to do with him. He might wake up in a few days completely disoriented and frightened, if he wakes at all, and you won't know what to do to him. After a few days of the discomfort, you'll take him to a medicine woman, or a nurse, or whatever it is your village has, only to be told that this is beyond their reach. Think what you will, but you know as well as I that, short of the spirits, I am the strongest magic wielder in the ocean, and most capable of taking care of him. And you are trying to interfere with my assistance."

The villager stood in silence, the witch turning around and picking the boy up. Slinging him over the left shoulder, the witch began to move away when the villager cried out one more time.

"You're… you're just going to take him? Just like that?"

"He's not in your territory. I don't see how this is any of your business."

"It certainly is my business. I'll, erm… I'll fight you! Yeah!" He lifted his arm, once again trying to intimidate the Sea Witch with his makeshift knife. It did not work.

The Sea Witch sighed, rolling his eyes. Glancing back at the merman, he curtly responded to the declaration, "No. You won't."

The villager grew more angry than before. "And why not?"

"Because I am in the business of giving people what they want. And trust me," he said as he turned away once more, "you don't want to fight me."

Sonic's head was in a fog as he woke. It dark, wherever he was, and even after his eyes adjusting, he couldn't see his surroundings very well. A small green haze emanated off the walls, and it served as the only light in what he concluded was deep inside a cave, somewhere. A dark cloud formed on the ground, shrouding the first few feet of height in darkness. It covered his lower body, even when he made small attempts to move. He pushed his hand out of the cloud, not entirely noting the resistance against it, and looked at it with half lidded eyes. The glove was not only thoroughly stained, but also absolutely soaked, clinging to his fur. _Great. I'll have to replace these, won't I? Wonder if Shadow has any I could borrow... _He sighed, peeling the wet fabric off his hands. He realized his own fur and quills were also wet, but when he tried to think of why, his head faded more into the was strange, and somewhere deep inside he felt worried about his apathy, but mostly he just shrugged it off. _I must still be tired. I didn't get to sleep much at Shadow's place..._

He narrowed his eyes in thought. Just what happened back there, anyway? He woke up because of some strange energy, there was a book on the floor, Shadow came in... everything else faded in his head. He couldn't recall a thing.

Sonic shivered, only just realizing that he was cold.

"Ah, I see you are awake," a voice called, deep and resonant. Sonic looked up from the clouded darkness to a horrific sight. It seemed to be a hedgehog at first sight; in fact, if he hadn't looked at it closely, this stranger would look remarkably like Shadow. It was the same ink black as the cloud beneath him, save for streaks of a pale, sickly green, and though his eyes bore a remarkable resemblance in intensity to Shadow's, they had an almost reptilian about them. Sonic half expected a forked tongue to poke out before he noticed that it would have been impossible; this thing had no mouth – or, at least, none that he could see. The way he moved, too, seemed as smooth as a snake, and looking down, he could see why; instead of legs, this creature had tentacles, pushing it along the ground. As it drew closed, more of the tentacles became lost in the dark cloud lining the ground, and he could almost pretend it was the dark hedgehog he saw what felt like only moments ago.

The creature spoke to him once again in that deep voice, dripping like thick syrup. "You know, when Aero told me about your world, about how there were people that looked just like some of us, I did not believe him. But it's true; save for the tail, you are his spitting image. Absolutely remarkable."

Sonic looked at him, puzzled. He knew he should be on his guard against what he perceived as a new threat, but for whatever reason, he could not bring himself to do it. Instead of forcing himself up and spouting some banter, as he would normally do, he simply fixed his eyes on the incomer's own and spoke directly.

"Did you do something to me?" He asked, his voice barely audible. "Do you know why I'm here?"

The creature paused. "I brought you here to this cave and did what was necessary to make you comfortable when you woke, but as to why you are in this realm, or in this world at all for that matter? That was not my doing." The creature came closer and looked intently at his quills, trailing his fingers through some of the patches. "…Not that I don't have a few theories," he continued, dropping his hand back down.

Sonic glanced down, still aware of the haze in his head. "I don't know. Something feels…strange. Like, more than even being sucked into another world would warrant. And I can't quite put my finger on it…."

The creature laughed in its throat. "You mean you have yet to notice? I give you credit for noticing that something is different than the norm; not everyone has that kind of ingrained truth. But I thought that if you had anything like Aero's endless willpower, you would force yourself out of my magics eventually. How disappointing…." The creature slid across the ground until it came up next to him, and slowly, a tentacle touched Sonic's face. "Or perhaps you have, and you simply don't believe your eyes, or think this some kind of dream?"

Sonic shivered at the touch of the cool flesh and pushed it away, a small scowl on his face. "If you think I'm the kind of guy to deny what's right in front of my nose," he said, his voice becoming raspy, "then you're the one who's dreaming!" But the act was not altogether convincing; there was a definite feeling of wrongness now, one that the fog in his head – as large as it had gotten, to the point of almost seeming all consuming – could not entirely cover. Questions appeared as often as they were forgotten in the haze. _What is this place? Who is this? How did I get here from Shadow's place? Where is Shadow?_

That last question struck a chord in his mind. Fragments of memory fought their way to the surface, only to be stuffed out like candle flames.

Shadow's troubled expression at seeing the book.

"I'll try to protect you..."

A baleful laugh.

"I will save you..."

The flashing of lights above the...ocean?

It was all making his head hurt.

The creature's previous amusement seemed to fade as Sonic pressed his hands against his temples, the cool fabric easing the throbbing. "Oh. It looks like you have some fight in you after all," it said, as if this was an extremely dull development, "but as much as I love to see you squirm, I don't have all day, and I need you at your full faculties to be able to negotiate properly."

It lifted its hand above his head and waved it in circles. The black cloud began to fade away, dissipating as though it were only a hallucination, and underneath there was... a tail? As in, a fish tail? No. This had to be the hallucination. Right? And yet, his eyes defied him, as the dim glow of green reflected off a shimmering red tail.

The creature sighed, though Sonic could not say how. "Ah, yes. It should all be clear enough now to begin having a real discussion."

And as though a cloud cleared from his mind as well, he fully realized what this place was. It wasn't a just a cave. It was a lair for a criminal – and what's more, it was underwater. Sonic was surrounded by his greatest fear. He tried gasping for air, only to take in water. Despite that, he wasn't dying, and he fell silent from confusion while the creature in front of him began to speak some more, looking into his eyes with its own ghastly pair.

"You see, the people of this world call me The Sea Witch. And I am in the business of giving people what they want."


End file.
